Till the End and Beyond
by thatsyou
Summary: Pepper is left alone on her birthday... again. What will Tony do to show her he didn't mean to run off a mission just to miss her birthday... again? Birthday gift for my best girl, spc6grl. Happy Birthday!


A/N: I know I haven't posted in a while but this is a small, yet heartfelt gift for my best girl out there, **spc6grl**, whose birthday is this Monday. Yes, you've got that right. Don't forget to wish her Happy Birthday, 'cause she deserves it for being such a special human being.

I should stop rambling. Here's the story. :)

Till the end and beyond

Pepper hated having to wait never-ending hours for her boyfriend to return home from his missions. The familiar gut-wrenching sensation was always present whenever he was away and that's one of the main reasons that got her aging prematurely.

Speaking of aging prematurely… It was her birthday. And she was spending it _alone._

No matter how much she tried to ignore the familiar sensation of anxiety in the pit of her stomach, Pepper couldn't focus on the paperwork. Everyone at the office had been friendly to her that day and it made her feel slightly better, but not entirely, since Tony wasn't home. He had been gone for three days and truth be told, she was getting worried because she hadn't heard anything from him.

She got home early that evening and changed into flannel pajamas, ready for another birthday spent alone. She settled on the small couch with a big chunk of Ben & Jerry's ice-cream and turned on the TV.

She had almost finished her ice-cream when she dropped the TV remote control on the floor. She leaned down to pick it up and noticed that the TV channel had changed. The channel was showing an episode of her favorite mini-series serial "Tin Man". She gasped in surprise as she settled back against the back of the couch and put her legs underneath her, eager to re-watch it since the last time she saw it was way back in 2008.

The corners of her mouth began to rise upwards as she saw DG embracing Cain. That scene made her heart flutter wildly in her chest when she realized it was almost midnight and she hadn't gotten any news from Tony.

She hadn't heard when the door opened because she had fallen asleep in the middle of that episode. Tony limped quietly till he reached the couch and sat down. He inspected her face slowly in the dimmed light and saw some fresh smears on her cheeks. His chest tightened when he realized she had been crying.

He sighed shakily and brushed the hair out of her eyes before leaning in and pressing a feather like kiss on her forehead.

"I'm here," he whispered. "I'll always be here with you."

Her eyes opened slowly and she smiled as she realized that the man standing next to her was indeed, Tony.

"Took you long enough." She rasped quietly and gasped as she saw the purple eye he was sporting.

"It's nothing." Tony said in his defense, holding a hand up to his eye and covering it. "You know, I could ask Fury to get me one of his eye-patches next time I come home like this."

Pepper wasn't impressed by that, so she stood up and carefully slipped his hand away from his eye and inspected his swollen eye.

"Tony…" she whispered, tracing his brow with her fingertips.

"I know, I know…" he nodded and checked his watch quickly.

"What are you doing?" Pepper asked sleepily and laid her forehead on his shoulder tiredly.

Tony smiled and brushed her hair out of her face, then whispered.

"You know I love you, right?"

Pepper sighed into his shirt and nodded quietly.

"Plus, I know I missed your birthday. Again. And I have no excuse this time."

Pepper murmured in sign of approval and turned her face towards his neck, inhaling in his scent.

"Actually, no. I didn't _quite _miss it. It's just 11:57. That means three minutes left."

The redhead snorted into his neck and wrapped her arm around his waist sleepily.

Tony didn't say anything as he reached into his back pocket and pulled out a diamond ring.

"Pepper…" he began shakily and kneeled on one knee.

Pepper looked at him, the sensation of sleep vanishing as she realized what he was doing.

"I know I might not be the perfect man to say 'yes' to, but I'm working on that, and believe me, I… I'll try to become that perfect man… the man you deserve for putting up with all the bad stuff I did in the past." He sighed before he continued. "I've said it before, but it's true. I don't deserve you, but I will do everything it takes to be even close to it. This implies… a lot, and um… I'm aware of what could happen, but knowing you away from me right now would tear me apart. If I asked you to leave me, you'd take a part of my soul with you. You've made me a better man, Pepper and I have no words to thank you enough for it. But if you give me this chance, I promise I'll try my best to make you happy, cherish and love you till I'm no longer breathing and beyond. "

Tony looked up at her with sincere eyes and smiled softly.

"It's you Pepper. It's always been you." He held up the ring in his palm. "Marry me, please."

Pepper let out a quiet sob and rushed to him, wrapping her arms around his shoulders and holding him tightly to her. Tony exhaled a sigh of relief and noticed that it was 11:59.

"Pep…" he whispered.

"Yes, Tony… yes. A million times yes!" She said, grabbing his cheeks and kissing him deeply while running her fingers through his hair.

Tony gave out an appreciative, yet sexy groan and held her to him as he slipped the ring on her finger. They pulled away after a few minutes, breathing heavily. He rested his forehead on hers and stroked her cheek.

"At least I haven't completely missed your birthday." He whispered hoarsely and played with the few buttons of her pajama top.

"Let me show you what I would have done to you if you had missed it." Pepper grabbed his hands and pushed him on the couch, stripping off her top and looking down at him – her fiancé.


End file.
